This baseball team makes cry.

JJ Hardy made two outs in one inning for thn 4th time this year.

Cannot believe a 7 run 2nd is A) not enough and B)the only we seem to be doing

Tough break for the Padres but I dont know how the ump would have seen that.

Not a move ANYONE expected...

It’s cool when we trade for a guy that we unceremoniously dumped before last season.


Dodgers trade RHP Vargas to Brewers
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
MILWAUKEE -- The Milwaukee Brewers have reacquired reliever Claudio Vargas from the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Dodgers got minor league catcher Vinny Rottino in the trade Friday between playoff contenders.
The 31-year-old Vargas was 0-0 with a 1.64 ERA in eight games for the NL West-leading Dodgers. The right-hander was on the disabled list for nearly three months because of elbow tendinitis, and was activated July 3.
Vargas won 11 games for Milwaukee in 2007 and was released before the start of the 2008 season.

Trade Deadline (to be updated as the day goes on)

Jack Z is cleaning house out in Seattle. Apparently the Brewers didn’t offer the right pieces, because Jarrod Washburn was for sale. He just went to Detroit for rookie left-hander Luke French and pitching prospect Mauricio Robles.
__
Mike Burns recalled from Nashville.
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Melvin on team flight to San Diego - likely no other moves imminent.
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The Twins got Orlando Cabrera and cash from Oakland in exchange for minor leaguer Tyler Ladendorf.
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White Sox get Jake Peavy from San Diego for LFP Aaron Poreda and Clayton Richard and RHP Dexter Carter and Adam Russell.
__
Scott Rolen is reportedly heading from Toronto to Cincinnati. This was a last minute deal and Rolen would have to approve because of his no-trade clause. Reports say the Blue Jays are getting Edwin Encarnacion and a minor leaguer.
__
Just to make the craziness of today complete, the Red Sox seem to have sent Adam LaRoche back to the Atlanta Braves. LaRoche was a Brave in 2006 and is now returning to be their first baseman. The BoSox received Casey Kotchman in the deal.

Bill Hall Sent to Nashville

Story here

Can you just imagine that conversation?

You know Macha dropped the bomb, leaving Billy sputtering and then kenny boy came back with something along the lines of "You said you wanted more reps, here's your chance. Or was that all just talk? I thought you weren't whining. You have been treated so unfairly, in your opinion and you are only put in the game in tought situations, well here's your chance to prove it hasn't all been talk. You want another shot, here it is, biatch!"

Ok, so it probably didn't go exactly like that, but I'm pretty sure Macha backed Hall's ass into a corner so that he either had to put up or shut up.

The best part is that I'm pretty sure Billy did this to himself. If he hadn't been lip-flapping to the press, he'd have continued to ride the pine and earn his money in a somewhat embarrassing fashion as #1 home run greeter. Now, he's found himself in the more embarrassing spot of being sent to the minors.

He was apparently offered this "opportunity" before the All-Star break and turned it down, but it sure seems like after Sunday's comments to the Journal, he was given the heavy handed push to Tennessee.

And we have a new tagline for this season:

Courtesy of BrewCrewBall's game thread for tonight

Brewers' 15th bases loaded walk of the season

by TheJay on Jul 29, 2009 7:42 PM CDT

Franchise record?

by KLSnow on Jul 29, 2009 7:42 PM CDT

20

by TheJay on Jul 29, 2009 7:43 PM CDT

that won't last much longer

by molitorfan on Jul 29, 2009 7:44 PM CDT

2009 Milwaukee Brewers:

Shattering Records, Shattering Hearts

by sowingwildoats on Jul 29, 2009 7:44 PM CDT

Trade Winds Blowing

Phillies land Cliff Lee

Philadelphia got Cliff Lee and OF Ben Francisco from Cleveland in exchange for four minor leaguers - a single-A RH, and a triple-A pitcher, catcher and SS.

The deal is pending medicals.

Seattle and Pittsburgh in 7-player deal

The Mariners got SS Jack Wilson and pitcher Ian Snell and the Pirates received Ronny Cedeno and former number one draft choice P Jeff Clement as well as three minor league pitchers.

Does this mean we can have our team back?

Look, I don't mean to sound unappreciative - they brought their money, which we'll gladly use - but after the mass exodus of fans on Monday (twice, once after each GS) and then again on Tuesday and the fact that Tuesday wasn't a sell-out, does that mean that the bandwagon fans are starting to jump ship? Because I can't say I'm sad about it.

I don't think I'm the only fan that feels a little possessive of this team and I've been a hardcore fan much for a shorter amount of time then most of the people I know. But still, I was there a few years ago when we were super excited to finish AT .500 - finally, a not losing season!

I'm aware it's elitist and ridiculous and completely without rationale, but that doesn't mean that it's not frustrating when I'm sitting at Miller Park and I'm interrupted between every batter, have a drunk guy screaming in my ear, have a "know-it-all" next to me "educating" his friends about the Brewers only to say an inning later that he doesn't know much about this Gallllll - lardo guy (all L's pronounced) and who is this kid pitching for Atlanta (Tommy Hanson - rookie ace, got his first career win against us in his debut).

Sure, I did write that I'm embarrassed to be a fan right now - but the key part there is fan. I'm still a fan. I'm just very, very sad about it.

So if this slide means that a few less little kids are kicking the back of my seat and a few less testosterone-fueled dudes get into fights and yell how much the Cubs suck - I'm all for it.

I can't decide if this is good news or bad news...

Jeff Suppan has an oblique strain

No one out there is happy with the fact that Jeff Suppan is in our rotation and at more millions than I care to go research right now. I certainly don't wish him ill, but if this is what it takes to be rid of that albatross, I'm not sure I can be upset.

That being said, we can't find someone to replace Dave Bush - what the hell will we do for another starter? Clearly, we can't NOT have someone, but at this point, if we have to trade important prospects or guys from the roster just to get someone to help us finish the season, it's going to suck.

Two weeks ago we were seriously talking about trading for Roy Halladay and making a serious push for the playoffs and here we are looking to just push-pull-or-drag ourselves to game 162.

You have to feel a little for Ken Macha.

Sure, today's choice of Villanueva was baffling, but he's been put in a ridiculous situation. Our starting rotation was questionable since before Spring Training and since then we've lost the most solid pitcher we had in Dave Bush and there aren't any other options for the Brewers that Macha has not tried.

What else is he supposed to do?

An MRI shows Suppan has oblique strain
Righty to be reevaluated on Thursday by club physician

By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com

07/28/09 9:54 PM ET

MILWAUKEE -- A physical ailment may be behind Brewers starter Jeff Suppan's recent struggles, after all.

A day after the right-hander proclaimed himself healthy, an MRI scan on Tuesday afternoon revealed a left-oblique strain, a rib cage ailment similar to the ones that struck both Braden Looper and Trevor Hoffman in Spring Training and caused prolonged absences.

Suppan hasn't won a start since June 12 and the Brewers are 2-6 in his outings since then. But losing him would be another significant blow to a struggling starting rotation already missing right-hander Dave Bush, who is on the disabled list with a right triceps injury. Two others -- Seth McClung and Mike Burns -- were ineffective in their starts and removed from the rotation. Another fill-in -- Carlos Villanueva -- was tagged for five runs in four innings against the Nationals on Tuesday night.

A club spokesperson said Suppan would be reevaluated on Thursday by head team physician William Raasch. Suppan's next scheduled start is Saturday against the Padres in San Diego.

Suppan was charged with 10 runs and 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings of a blowout loss to Washington on Monday and insisted afterward that he was physically fine. That outing came on the heels of a 3 1/3-inning start in Pittsburgh, in which Suppan surrendered five runs on seven hits.

He missed some time last July with irritation in his right elbow and was asked on Monday night whether any physical ailments were behind his recent slump.

"Health-wise had nothing to with [it]," Suppan said. "I wasn't making pitches, I think that's what it comes down to. You have to make pitches and I think offensively we did a good job tonight. I put us in a hole and really didn't do a good job."

With Suppan's status in limbo and Bush still a few weeks away, general manager Doug Melvin continued to look for sensible deals ahead of Friday's nonwaiver Trade Deadline.

Melvin made a rare postgame visit to the Brewers clubhouse on Monday night to once again discuss available arms with manager Ken Macha. Melvin told coaches to "keep our chins up as much as we can," Macha said.

Adam Dunn's HR left the park

Because it went out between the Tundra Territory and the right field bleachers, it's path was blocked, but it sure seemed like Dunn's HR left the park.

Check out John_Stangler on Twitter - he TwitPic'd the ball's retrieval from the concourse outside.

Bam, Sausages go down!

You know how bad it is here in Milwaukee? Even the Racing Sausages can't finish a complete game!

Chorizo and Italian collided in front of the Nats dugout tonight during the race and Italian looked a little loopy once she got up and finished the race.

Favre decides to stay retired, we all pray this is really the end

Peter King >
INSIDE THE NFL
Favre fools us once again

I give up.

All along, Brett Favre's decision was supposed to be simple. He had surgery in late May on a nagging biceps tendon in his throwing arm for one reason -- to clear the last hurdle toward playing a 19th year in the NFL. And his surgeon, the noted James Andrews, told him he was making splendid progress and he'd be fine and be able to throw at the start of the season with no pain.

And yet, something just didn't feel right. When Favre would talk to friends and associates in recent weeks, they noticed a reticent in his voice. "He was coming to the realization that he couldn't be 100 percent committed to football right now," one friend said Tuesday night. "Sometimes he felt ready to go, and sometimes he felt like, 'What am I doing?'"

That's the side of Favre that won out late Tuesday afternoon when he told Brad Childress that he would not be accepting the Vikings' offer to play quarterback for them in 2009.

So now I've been wrong three times. I thought he was retired last year and he played for the Jets. I thought he was retired this year, and I said he'll come back to play for the Vikings unless his arm is a problem. His arm wasn't. And he still isn't going to play. That's why I give up. Don't ask me anymore what I think about Favre, whether I think he's going to play or whether I think he's going to mow the grass for the rest of his life. I don't know because I honestly don't think he knows.

I talked to two people Tuesday night who know Favre and asked them the same question: Do you think he'll return at some point this year if some team suffers a big quarterback injury. One said he had no idea. The other said Favre's certainly in good enough shape. It wouldn't be a bit surprising.

And so at the end of the day, we're left to wonder if one of the most compelling football careers of all time is over or just on indefinite leave. I don't think anybody knows because I don't think Favre knows.

As for the Vikings, I disagree with those who say the loss of Favre leaves them mortally wounded. I say they're better at quarterback right now than they were at the close of the 2008 season. That's because Sage Rosenfels has a more accurate downfield arm than Gus Frerotte and more upside at this state of his career than Frerotte. Rosenfels will probably win the training camp battle against Tarvaris Jackson for the starting job. To me, that gives the Vikings a slight edge at quarterback over last year.

But it's not what coach Brad Childress or his offensive coordinator wanted heading into training camp. And Childress will have to answer questions for the first couple of days for training camp about putting so many eggs in the Favre basket and then getting slapped in the face by the quarterback. That's going to be a drag on the Vikings, something they're going to have to overcome if the offense is going to be better than last year.

Will they survive Favre hangover? I say the only way they do is by by Rosenfels becoming a 60 percent, 3,500-yard passer.

I dont need the Brewers to win it all, but who didnt think this team was past being a laughing stock?

8 walks and 12 hits given up this game. how do thd Nats only have 8 runs? In 2 games theyve outscored us 22-8.

Poor Trevor. Counting the ASG tonight is his 7th appearance in July and he has to come in in the 9th down 8-2 to the damn Nationals.

Dillanueva? Villard? Either way, lets hope we never see it again?

And as I say that, there goes the 3 run homer. Probably shouldve pulled him when Castro visited the mound.

REALLY impressed with Tim Dillard here. Hes worked through jams and hasnt lost his composure.

I cant believe we cant put up more than 2 runs. We are really struggling

6 outs at the warning track in less than 5 innings. Jason Kendall must have given lessons at BP

Ok not a pretty beginning for the offense but to be fair, this guy has just 3.2 IP - not exactly easy to know his stuff.

Beware the awesome power of Nyger Morgan and his 2 hr! oh make that 3.

Interesting story...

Interesting and strange. I mean, I know what they're getting at, but taking their own name away is detrimental to them, you know? I'm surprised they would go that far when they're spending those kinds of bucks.


The case of the missing Potawatomi sign
By Don Walker of the Journal Sentinel
July 28, 2009 6:00 a.m.


When the Milwaukee Brewers met the Atlanta Braves last weekend for a three-game series, something was missing at Miller Park.

Normally, on the outfield wall near the visitors' bullpen, is a large sign for Potawatomi Bingo and Casino.

This past weekend, however, the large sign was covered in plastic wrap.

How come? Neither a casino or Brewers' spokesman would comment, other than to say that the two business partners have a confidentiality clause in their agreement that forbids release of any details of the contract.

But there is a sense that the Potawatomis find a team named the Braves offensive. Moreover, the tribe might not be thrilled with the Braves logo, which includes a hatchet.

The Braves, of course, have been the Braves for decades. They used to play in Milwaukee and, before that, in Boston. So the name is well known.

But for American Indians, no matter how many years the Braves have been the Braves, it might still be a painful reminder. And for that reason, the tribe likely asked the Brewers to cover up the sign.

The effort to cover up the Potawatomi sign is not new, one baseball source said. And while the tribe and the franchise have been partners for a number of years, the casino and franchise took their relationship to a new level in January.

That's because the Brewers, in what team officials said was an historic first, signed a deal with Potawatomi Bingo and Casino to become the team's first presenting sponsor.

A presenting sponsorship is a big deal for any team. For the Brewers, it's the second biggest deal the team has. The biggest is the naming rights deal, which gives MillerCoors the right to call the ballpark Miller Park.

The last thing the Brewers want to do is lose a partner. For that reason, we can expect to see a coverup the next time the Braves visit Milwaukee.

Embarrassed to be a Brewers fan.

They are not even words to describe the crapfest that is happening on my TV right now. Brewers pitchers have given up two grand slams to the frickin' Washington Nationals. Both to Josh Willingham.

The Nationals are 30-68, have the worst record in baseball and we just gave up six runs to them in the fifth followed by seven runs in the sixth.

It has now been twenty-one games since we've won two games in a row.

From BCB: They are 1-12 in their last 13 day games, 4-12 on Sundays and 11-22 in day games overall. The Brewers are now 7-14 in their last 21 games, and haven't won either a series or a back-to-back games since beating the Mets on June 29 and June 30.

And to top it all off, tomorrow's announced starter is 2-7 with a 6.18 ERA.

J-S reporter Tom Haudricourt noted in his Twitter feed that that manager Ken Macha seemed surprised that reporters were surprised upon learning that Carlos Villanueva was being named starter.

Hell, Macha, even Villy himself was surprised:

Some of Villanueva's fellow bullpen mates told him Sunday that they read online he was a candidate to start, but Villanueva didn't believe it. He thought manager Ken Macha was just "taking some heat" off newly-promoted righty Tim Dillard, who was 10-4 with a 3.66 ERA in 19 starts for Triple-A Nashville.

Villanueva's tune changed on Monday afternoon, when he was summoned to Macha's office and handed the assignment.

"Yeah, it was [a surprise]," Villanueva said. "I really thought that [Dillard] was going to start. But he called me into the office and told me I was going to go tomorrow, and I'm just thankful for the opportunity."

Villanueva's longest outing this season was his 56-pitch, three-inning stint against the Pirates on July 20. He has thrown one inning or fewer in 37 of his 43 appearances.

Of course, Tim Dillard was just brought up and he has been kicking ass in the minors. His last outing was a one-hit, complete game shutout in which he faced the minimum number of batters and took just 65 pitches.

But clearly, he shouldn't start.

The supposed plan is for Villy to pitch 3 or 4 and Dillard to pitch 3 or 4, but I think everyone is hoping Villy's just a place-holder for a trade that we're waiting to happen.

Either way - we have tickets tomorrow night and it's the first time in a long time that I really don't want to go. Of course, they're Club Level tickets, so we're not turning them down, but that only means we'll be eating better food while we're ashamed to be there!

Since we're talking player sightings...

I posted about my Braun run-in over at Brewerfan.net and that brought another poster to share possibly the best story I've read in awhile:

"I forgot to add that when I met Doug Davis over the winter and we were getting a few auto's, my cubs buddy asked him to sign his cubs hat. Davis looked at him kind of funny and my buddy said, hey, write whatever you want, doug said...anything? My buddy said ANYTHING. So Doug signs the underbill of his fitted cubs hat....Cubs suck. I own them. God bless, Doug Davis."

Spectacular!

Sexiest Curve Ball in baseball is back!

RJ Swindle was recalled to the Brewers today!

MLB story here.

Mike Burns was sent back to Nashville and Swindle gives us another left-hander in the bullpen.

Best Saturday EVER!

Best Saturday baseball experience ever. Ate lunch late so didn't eat dinner before the 6pm Brewers game and it was too hot to eat at the game, so we decide to go to the QDoba near my house after the game.

Let me set the stage a little. We are season seat holders and our old ticket rep is gone, so they invited us to go meet the new guy tonight before the game, which we did, thinking its never bad for him to know who you are. As we're leaving, he offers us a JJ Hardy or Ryan Braun bobblehead. I hem and haw for a minute, because I already have an extra of this year's Braun and I'm trying to decided which of the other two would be better trade bait and as I'm doing that he points out that it's last year's Braun, so we take that one.

As we're about to walk into dinner, I upload the bobble and my big camera and case and our scorebook from my bag.

20 minutes later, in walks Ryan Braun.

Here I am, without my camera and with his bobble in the car. I immediately go out to grab them and come back inside. Except I forgot my camera. So I go back outside. I the meantime, he's walked right past our table and my bf gets a picture of him and then with him.

By this point, they're eating, so I do not disturb, but sit down to wait it out. Now, not only have I left and come back twice, but I now have to explain to him why I just so happen to have his bobble in my purse (STALKER!) It was a little awkward, but in the end, I explained how I got it and now I have a signed bobble and the bf has a picture. The bf is wearing a Braun jersey, but didn't ask to have it signed because he had already asked for the picture and wasn't trying to be greedy.

But yeah, good times. I love how crazy I must have seemed to have this bobble just so happen to be on me, but either way, cool times.

And today's experiment has proven that Mr. Burns out of the bullpen is a bad idea.

Crowd with loud boos over Hart's effort on Anderson's single in the 7th.

More roof movement. We've seen more roof action in the past two days than we've seen all season.

Martin Prado has the most elaborate pre-AB ritual I've ever seen.

Why did the sound guy just play Burlesque music for Bill Castro's walk to the mound?

Two great stops from Prince in the first four innings.

Best "homemade" jersey ever

Or what do you do when a guy leaves the team and all you've got is this lousy Tshirt.

No joking. We're eating dinner and Ryan Braun just walked in!

Yay for the scoring, Sad for no Hells Bells

Bases loaded, 1 out, Kendall at bat - this has GIDP written all over it.

Our directions to Coffey: GIDP. Hells Bells. The end.

And theyre closing the roof. must have gotten permission as I thought the rule said one change per game.

YoGa

Spectacular AB for YoGa in the 8th. 11 pitches ends in a single. Of course he promptly got confused and made a baserunning error that cost a run, but it was still nice. A little surprising that YoGa was left in.

Wow did cc seem to be out at 2nd on that SB.

Absolutely beautiful Negro Leagues jerseys tonight. Prince loses points for being the only Brewer w/o socks.

Prince with another agile catch. This time he pulled off the DP and avoided the broken bat.

They teased us with it during the NA, but now the roof is opening! Good, it was warm in here!

Cards Trade with A's for Matt Holliday

The Athletics and Cardinals have completed a trade that sends outfielder Matt Holliday to St. Louis in exchange for third baseman Brett Wallace, outfielder Shane Peterson and right-handed pitcher Clayton Mortensen, sources told ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney.

In addition, sources said the Athletics will throw in $1.5 million to the Cardinals.
Holliday, 29, is eligible for free agency after this season, and has had a lackluster season overall with the Athletics, hitting .287 with 11 homers and 54 RBIs.

Matt Holliday
#5 LFOakland Athletics
2009 STATS
GM93
HR11
RBI54
R52
OBP.378
AVG.286

But he has hit well this month, batting .344 with a .421 on-base percentage, and one scout who has seen him play said Tuesday that Holliday is swinging the bat as well now as he has all year. The Cardinals have been searching for a way to upgrade their offense to build some lineup protection for first baseman Albert Pujols.

Earlier this season, St. Louis had indicated to other teams that it did not have a lot of money to spend, but it's possible that the Cardinals' front office could navigate that issue by getting approval from ownership, or by having Oakland kick in some money to offset the money still owed to Holliday, which is about $6 million.

Oakland acquired Holliday in a trade with Colorado last fall, in the hope that he would be the anchor to the Athletics' offense. But Holliday -- and the whole Oakland offense -- has struggled for much of this year, and rival general managers have wondered if the shift in baseball's economics might compel the Athletics to move Holliday.

Holliday is earning $13.5 million in salary this season, and in order for Oakland to recoup draft picks, it would have to offer him arbitration. Holliday could be in line for an award of $16 million, something that might be more difficult for the small-market Athletics to absorb. The Yankees, after all, declined to offer Bobby Abreu arbitration last fall because they feared that he might accept it.

A Perfect Game for Buehrle!

Congratulations go to Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox who just threw a perfect game against the Tampa Bay Rays at home! 116 pitches of perfection!

Way to go, Mark. It couldn’t happen to a better guy.

He’ll apparently be buying a big present for center fielder Dewayne Wise , who literally pulled a home run back into the park to keep the perfect game alive. And another for Ozzie Guillen, who put Wise in as a defensive substitution before the ninth began, moving Scott Podsednik to left field.

Seth McClung needs a break

Seth McClung’s woes continue, as he gave up back-to-back, two out, run-scoring doubles to allow the Pirates to tie the game at 7-7 in the bottom of the 5th.

Edit: McClung end up on DL

Pirates trade Adam LaRoche to Red Sox

Reports are surfacing that while the Pirates and Brewers are currently playing a game, the Pirates have traded first baseman Adam LaRoche to the Boston Red Sox for minor league pitcher Hunter Strickland and shortstop Argenis Diaz.

I’ve seen it reported a few places, but of course the league hasn’t confirmed it yet.

Braun, McGehee, save Suppan

Pirates pitcher Maholm struggled in the fifth, giving up a one out single to Craig Counsell, then walking Corey Hart and Mike Cameron to load the bases for Ryan Braun, who hit a three-run double to tie the game.
Prince Fielder then popped out to center to advance Braun to third. Casey McGehee then hit a home run to give the Brewers a 7-5 lead.

To really tell you how crazy this game is – Bill Hall is 2-2 with a walk and an RBI. Welcome above the Mendoza line, Bill Hall.

Losing a series to Pittsburgh?

So glad I turned the Brewers game on the radio. It’s the third inning and he’s given up four homeruns – three this inning.

Ryan Doumit has homered in each of his first two at-bats, double his home run total to 4.

The Pirates had just 67 homers as a team coming into this game.

Way to go Suppan!

He's BA-AAAACK!

Ryan Braun just hit another home run in the top of the first in Pittsburgh. That’s two homeruns in three days after not hitting one from June 25 to July 20.

More on the bench clearing

In this morning’s Frosty Mug, Kyle expressed surprise that there was little chatter about the bench clearing “brawl” that happened late in last night’s game when Brewers pitcher Chris Smith beaned Pirates reliever Jeff Karstens.

Karstens wasn’t happy about this and took a step or two in the direction of the mound, at which time Jason Kendall pushed/escorted him towards first base. The Pirates objected to that treatment of Karstens and both benches ended up on the field, along with guys streaming in from the bullpens.

It was no brawl and the whole thing felt a little half-hearted. Everyone streamed on the field and mostly stood around. Kendall was beyond pissed and did his fair share of yelling at Pirates pitching coach Joe Kerrigan

What I don’t think any viewers remembered until Rock mentioned it is that Karstens was the pitcher that pegged Ryan Braun in the middle of the back, closer to his head than he was happy about, leading to Braun having to sit out for a few days.

Smith said the beaning was an accident after the game, but I’m not sure anyone believes that.

The thing is – since it wasn’t actually a brawl, I was pretty apathetic about the whole thing, which probably isn’t the best reaction to have.

It made me wonder – I think I’ve become complacent about the whole beaning thing. It’s standard practice in baseball and guy’s like Ryan Braun are always going to engender that kind of reaction. Once Rock reminded me about the Braun beaning the last time the Pirates were at Miller Park, I totally lost interest in last night’s situation.

I won’t pretend I understand these unwritten baseball rules – they’re so entrenched in male ego and baseball code, I know I’ll never be able to wrap my head around it. I don’t even try. I don’t condone it – I just know that it’s a part of the game and these sorts of head games go on in every game for every team.

I said back when Karstens hit Braun, presumably for the celebration of his walk-off Grand Slam, that I thought it was pretty week.

I understand the laws of showboating, but I feel like there have to be some exceptions to the rule, and a walk-off Grand Slam in the final week of a season while still in the pennant chase seems like it should be one of those exceptions – especially when it was Braun’s first Granny and he’s still a kid. And it’s not like he did cartwheels around the field.

But ok, the Pirates carried a grudge I don’t understand the whole offseason and then pegged our between the shoulder blades and caused him to miss some time. Yeah, you’re going to get pegged back. Why are the Pirates surprised?

In the circular way baseball has, this has come around quite nicely. Braun hit the granny, got beaned for it, was quite vocal about it to the media, warning that we played the Pirates quite a few more times this season, complained about the pitching, went into a slump, Smith beans Karstens and in Braun’s next at-bat – he hit a home run, hopefully breaking the slump.

Baseball is nuts.

Stupid Pirates

Awesome - the Brewers are losing 7-2 to the Pittsburgh team that we've beaten 17 times in a row and we drill Karstens, who drilled Braun earlier in the year, and the benches and bullpens clear and crazy Jason Kendall looks like he's going to kill a biatch.

New guy Felipe Lopez on base five times with four solid base hits. I like him more than Rickie already. Of course, the two outs on the bases weren't my favorite...

It's nice that all it took from Braun to break out of his slump is a good old-fashioned bench clearer.

Maybe it will be like last season when the Prince/Parra showdown sparked the team....

We can only hope.

Felipe Lopez with a hit in his first at-bat then promptly got picked off.

Brewers trade for second baseman

Edit: Gamel sent back to AAA

The most interesting part of the below article is the comment that Lopez will join the team in Pittsburgh tomorrow and a corresponding roster move will be announced.

Here's hoping that the only thing to announce is sending Mat Gamel back to the minors so he can get regular playing time and at-bats. He took another strikeout looking today and it sure seems the limited time at the plate has shaken his confidence and affected his "eye."

Of course, it could be another trade - presumably it would be J.J. Hardy or Alcides Escobar. However, Doug Melvin has said that neither of these guys are options for any other club - he won't even consider getting rid of them - but of course, you never know.

As for Lopez, he's having the best half-season of his career and he gives us a legitimate leadoff hitter, which we've been desperate for since Rickie Weeks got injured - if batting Jason Kendall leadoff isn't a desperate cry for help, I don't know what is.

The lack of a viable leadoff guy has really been bothering Ken Macha - he hates making outs on the bases, so this is an obvious move for the Brewers.

He's a switch hitter, which is something we haven't seen in Milwaukee in a long time and his on-base percentage is the second highest in the NL for leadoff hitters.

Brewers make deal for infielder Lopez

Send two Minor Leaguers to D-backs for veteran

By Jesse Sanchez / MLB.com

07/19/09 6:49 PM ET

The Brewers bolstered their defense and added to their offense Sunday, acquiring infielder Felipe Lopez from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for Minor League outfielder Cole Gillespie and right-handed pitcher Roque Mercedes.

Lopez is expected to join the team Monday in Pittsburgh. A corresponding roster move will be announced.

"Felipe is an accomplished veteran player who gives us versatility at three infield positions," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "He has been a very productive player at the top of the order with respect to both batting average and on-base percentage."

Lopez, 29, is hitting .301 with six home runs, 25 RBIs and six stolen bases in 85 games with the D-backs this season. He has made 79 starts at second base, one at designated hitter, and is among the National League leaders with a .372 on-base-percentage.

Lopez was excited by the prospects of joining a contender in Milwaukee.

"That's always good, that's always exciting," Lopez said. "It's tough leaving the guys here because I spent a lot of time with the young guys and it's tough leaving them, but at the same time I'm excited for the opportunity."

A career .266 hitter, Lopez has hit 77 home runs with 359 RBIs and 115 stolen bases in 958 games during nine seasons with Toronto (2001-02), Cincinnati (2003-06), Washington (2006-08), St. Louis (2008) and Arizona (2009). He was an All-Star in 2005 when he hit .291 with 23 home runs, 85 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 148 games with the Reds. He earned the Silver Slugger Award at shortstop that season.

Jesse Sanchez is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Something seems wrong with seeing Pat McCurdy at Festa Italiana

Bush struggles in second rehab start

Bush struggles in minors

By Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel

July 15, 2009 10:17 p.m.

What was scheduled to be the final minor-league tuneup for right-hander Dave Bush before he returns to the Brewers' starting rotation did not go well Wednesday night

Pitching for Class AA Huntsville in Mississippi, Bush allowed six hits and five runs in three innings, with two walks and two strikeouts. After allowing no runs in the first inning, he allowed one run in the second and four in the third inning.

Of the 40 pitches Bush threw, only 19 were strikes. That's not a good sign for a pitcher known for pounding the strike zone.

The plan was for Bush to use that final tune-up with Huntsville, then pitch for the Brewers Monday in Pittsburgh. We'll see if this poor outing changes those plans.

Bush went on the DL after it was discovered that he had a micro-tear in his pitching arm, the result of being struck by a line drive in a game in Florida.

All-Star Game Musings

Some random ASG thoughts:

Did Brewers players get the shaft, or are we just being too sensitive?

Sure, we were all pretty pissed during the Home Run Derby when Nelson Cruz belted his 11 homers with full coverage and then they interviewed Albert Pujols throughout Prince’s first round, meaning we only saw limited coverage and had to listen to Alby insult Prince on top of it.

Then, during the ASG, Braun comes to bat and President Obama is in the broadcast booth, so once again there was no talk of the actual on-field action.

Later, Braun was moved from right field to left field and the on-screen graphic labeled Brad Hawpe of the Rockies as Braun.

Clearly we were more keyed in on our players, so I’m not sure other team’s and their players didn’t get similar treatment, but it sure did feel like some sort of conspiracy to limit the amount of air time for small-town Milwaukee. I’d be curious to read around and see if any other fans noticed this or had similar experiences.

Did Ryan Braun misplay Curtis Granderson’s triple?

I seemed to be the only one who noticed/was concerned about this in last night’s Ladies… liveblog, but it keeps nagging at me. By this point in the game, Braun was in left, where is more comfortable and, it being St. Louis, he should have been more familiar with how the ball would carom.

I really think I think that if Ryan played that ball better, Curtis only gets a double and therefore doesn’t score on a sac fly.

In a post-game interview, Curtis was asked if he was thinking triple all the way and he said no, but when he saw that the ball rolled around and wasn’t picked up, he kicked it for third.

It’s possible even bringing this up makes me a bad fan.

Braun was clearly expecting the ball to bounce out of that corner more than it did – the question is whether or not he should have expected that.

Plays in the corner like that are always deceptive because the fielder can’t go charging in there in case the ball does carom out and they’re totally left flat-footed, so the fielder looks like they’re not hustling/jogging.

I think it’s Curtis’ comments that really do this in for me. Had I not seen him saying that he wasn’t automatically thinking three, maybe I would just think Grandy is super quick and that’s the end of it.

Of course, the fact that it was the winning run of the game doesn’t help things, either.

I still feel like Prince got the shaft

Braun got to play multiple innings. Trevor pitched a full inning. Prince had a PH appearance in the second. Sure, he made the most of it, driving in a run, but after the hoopla of the night before, it seemed a little wrong that Prince was relegated to one AB. He certainly earned more than that.

In the liveblog last night, the argument was made that there were four NL 1B, but you know how that could have been solved? Not playing Alby for six innings. I know it was his home stadium, but that’s just excessive.

Speaking of which…

Were other ASG’s this focused on the hometown players?

I’ll admit that I usually only casually watch the ASG, so I’m usually only half paying attention and I know that last season was a lot more about the stadium and the history than the current players, so I really can’t remember that much hoopla surrounding individual Yankee players.

I admit to being biased against STL and Pujols, so I’m curious if this treatment happened in other years, since I’m not sure.

I feel like the other players must have felt a little like thy were second class citizens. And the ultimate second fiddle was Yadier Molina, who must think he’s chopped liver. All that Alby love and very little mention of Yadi, who also played a ton of the game - None of us could even name who the backup catcher was last night.

Trenni really gives the Brewers some love

During last night’s game, MLBN played a half-hour “highlight show” of the red carpet parade that was held earlier in the day that I DVR’d. There were four interviews that I saw – Ryan Howard sat down with the guys and then the two girls, Trenni and Hazel Mae, interviewed three players while they were in the their trucks – Shane Victorino, Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun. I don’t imagine for a minute that would have happened without Trenni.

Trivia answers

Which Brewers player has won the most Gold Glove Awards?

First baseman George Scott, with five, from 1972-1976

Name the mustached master of the mound who, in 1981, became the first reliever to earn both the AL Most Valuable Player Award and AL Cy Young Award.

Rollie Fingers


What years did Hank Aaron play for the Brewers?Which Brewers All-Star became the first 30-30 man in the American League, hitting 31 home runs and stealing 38 bases in a single season?

1975 and 1976

Which Brewers player became the first to lead the American League in homers, when he batted 45?

Center fielder Gorman Thomas, in 1979. George Scott’s 36 homers in 1975 tied him for the American League lead with Oakland’s Reggie Jackson.

Many baseball fans know that "Bud" Selig was a primary figure in bringing back baseball to Milwaukee. Name Selig's partner.

Milwaukee businessman Edmund B. Fitzgerald

This pitcher had a career year in 1973, when he became the first Brewers player to post 20 wins - the only time in his career he reached this milestone. Name him.

Jim Colburn

The only Brewers player to win two MVP Awards, this versatile HOF'er did so at two difference positions. Name the player and the positions he was playing when he won his MVP Awards.

Robin Yount, shortstop (1982) and center field (1989)

Following the 1980 season, the Brewres completed a trade with St. Louis, giving up four players in exchange for two future Cy Young Award winners, Rollie Fingers and Pete Vuckovich. Can you name the players Milwaukee sent south to the Cardinals?

Dave LaPoint, Lary Sorensen, David Green, Sixto Lezcano

For four straight years, this pitcher led the Brewers in wins, including a 20-win season in 1986. Name this Mexican native who spent his entire 9-year career with Milwaukee.

Teddy Higuera

Help me celebrate!

Yes, I am that big of a nerd that it's my birthday and I'm home liveblogging the All Star Game with the other Ladies...

Grab yourself a drink and come join us!

Don't wanna be at work...

Prince Wins! I win! It's a good night!

If you didn't join the Ladies... liveblog tonight, you missed a good time - not the least of which is that I WON BIATCHES!

Don't think I won't gloat about that for awhile!

Congrats to Prince Fielder and thank you so much for the Untuckem!

Ladies... live blogging

Join us here for tonight's HR Derby and tomorrow's ASG!

Brewers Trivia and Facts

First up, the trivia questions. Answers in a few days....

Which Brewers player has won the most Gold Glove Awards?

Name the mustached master of the mound who, in 1981, became the first reliever to earn both the AL Most Valuable Player Award and AL Cy Young Award.

What years did Hank Aaron play for the Brewers?

Which Brewers All-Star became the first 30-30 man in the American League, hitting 31 home runs and stealing 38 bases in a single season?

Which Brewers player became the first to lead the American League in homers, when he batted 45?

Many baseball fans know that "Bud" Selig was a primary figure in bringing back baseball to Milwaukee. Name Selig's partner.

This pitcher had a career year in 1973, when he became the first Brewers player to post 20 wins - the only time in his career he reached this milestone. Name him.

The only Brewers player to win two MVP Awards, this versatile HOF'er did so at two difference positions. Name the players and the positions he was playing when he won his MVP Awards.

Following the 1980 season, the BRewres completed a trade with St. Louis, giving up four players in exchange for two future Cy Young Award winners, Rollie Fingers and Pete Vuckovich. Can you name the players Milwaukee sent south to the Cardinals?

For four straight years, this pitcher led the Brewers in wins, including a 20-win season in 1986. Name this Mexican native who spent his entire 9-year career with Milwaukee.

And some Brewers Facts

*When Brewers catch Chad Moeller hit for the cycle against the Reds in April 27, 2004, he became the first Brewers player to accomplish this feat at home.

*In 1982, Harvey's Wallbangers set a franchise record with 216 home runs, but only his 89 of them (41%) at County Stadium.

*The Brewers opened Miller Park with a 5-4 victory over Cincinnati. The win earned some measure of revenge over the Reds, who had spoiled the final game in County Stadium the previous year with an 8-1 win.

*Hank Aaron treated the home crowd to what proved to be the 755th and final home run of his illustrious career on July 20, 1976. The solo shot came off California's Dick Drago and contributed to the Brewers 6-2 win.

*On October 3, 1976, in the final at-bat of his career, Hank Aaron legged out an infield single and drove in one last RBI to extend his Major League RBI record to 2,297.

*When Robin Yount posted his 3,000th hit, a single against Cleveland on September 9, 1992, he became the third youngest player to reach the milestone, trailing only Ty Cobb and Hank Aaron.

*How prolific a hitter was Hank Aaron? If you take all his career hits and subtract his home runs, he would still have more than 3,000 hits.

*On April 22, 2006, Bill Hall, Damien Miller, Brady Clark, J.J. Hardy and Prince Fielder feasted on Cincinnati Reds pitching in the fourth inning, hitting five home runs to tie a Major League record for round-trippers in an inning.

*Down 9-0 against the Reds on April 28, 2004, Milwaukee treated the Miller Park faithful to the biggest comeback in franchise history, scoring 10 unanswered runs to win 10-9 in 10 innings.

Trevor Hoffman - All-Star

Congrats to Trevor Hoffman on being named as a replacement to this year's All-Star team. It will be his seventh ASG and according to this article on Brewers.com, the entire Hoffman family is excited about this appearance. His kids are 10, 11 and 12 this year and are at an age that they can really be excited about it. They're also very excited to see Prince in the HR Derby.

Hoffman will be the oldest member of the NL team and is the second oldest guy on either team, just behind Boston's Tim Wakefield.

Hoffman was asked to join the team to replace injured Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton.

Poor Gamel. McGehee's had a couple of high profile errors and Gamel still gets pulled with him as the defensive replacement.

Oh Frank. We just remembered that freakin Air Supply sings that song. Prince gives you noogies for that, doesnt he?

Diggin Mike Burns AB music - old school Offspring "Nitro"

To the people with kids in sec 433 row 18, you are great. You offered to switch seats with the folks next to you bc you knew your kids would be up and down.

Frank hits home runs?

Oh Frank Catalanotto, is your at bat music really "I Don't Want To Lose Your Love. Toni-ight!"

Awesome! MP sound guy on the ball with the Mike Burns\Mr Burns "Excellent" sound e ffect.

All Star Game, the weekend and gratitude

Watching the Home Run Derby? How about the All Star Game? Make sure you check in with me and the rest of the Ladies… on both Monday and Tuesday for fun, snark, drinking and live blogging.

Our blog host doesn’t allow for the software, so we’ll be using CoverIt Live and we’ll set up a link each night which we’ll post at ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com, so come join us. You’ll be able to join the conversation, make fun of us and generally enjoy our sparkling personalities! Sounds like good times!

Plus, you’ll be able to make fun of me all night on Tuesday for spending my birthday live blogging. Because I’m a NERD!

Have a safe, happy weekend everyone. If you’re in Milwaukee, go have some crepes and wine at Bastille Days and make sure you pet some Basset Hounds at the Basset Buddies tent.

If you’re in the Appleton area tonight, Dave Bush is making a rehab start with the TimberRattlers.

I highly recommend attending a TRats game, no matter where you are in the state. We’ve driven up twice from Milwaukee and it couldn’t have gone smoother. The stadium is beautiful, and it’s an all around great experience, especially if you have kids.

I had a death in the family over the last weekend and the funeral on Wednesday, so I’m sorry for the blackout this week, but we had other priorities. Thanks for being patient.

On hold

I've got a lot of things going on in my personal life, so posting is going to be scarce this week.

I'm fairly certain I haven't posted this before, but any time I post on Brew Crew Ball, it is linked on my Twitter.

Follow me @tristarscoop

Also, any time something new is published on Ladies... it also will make their Twitter feed

Follow @ladiesdotdotdot

There will be some new content from there this week, but otherwise, give me til the weekend to get back on my feet. Thanks

The bf and I totally have a crush on Mike Marseco. We're calling it now. He's our next Cousell!

Cain with a single. He's 1-3.

With great relief pitching from Almonte and 2 runs scored in each the 2nd, 4th and 5th, the TRats have made a game of this. 9-6 at the end of the 5th.

I DID NOT KNOW THAT: Brett Lawrie took second in the Midwest League ASG Home Run Derby. Sad for him it was to a guy named Rebel.

Also, Cain's at bat music is somewhat obscure New Orleans rap.

2nd inning still on, TRats already down 9-0. Swear xe saw an inside the park HR, though the hometown scorer gave an error.

Surprise! Lorenzo Cain playing CF tonight. There was no news on this last night. Must have just happened.

What the hell is Lorenzo Cain doing playing for the TRats?

Have to say well done to the TRats - we got here two hours before gametime and the game was already sold out to grass seats.

Way to go, YoGa!

Seven K's through the first four innings, a career-high 12 K's through seven innings.

Spectacular pitching.

Brewers ranked seventh of 122 professional franchises

The annual ESPN the Magazine survey that ranks professional sports franchises on their fan-friendly-ness.

According to the MLB.com story, the ESPN release said they studied the franchises in terms of "Paying fans back for their investment of time, money and passion."

The rankings have been released every year since 2003 and use research and fan feedback to rank in eight categories - affordability, coaching, fan relations, ownership, players, stadium experience, winning and winning over the past three seasons.

The LA Angels of Anaheim are the number one overall team, but the Brewers are the only other MLB team in the top ten. The Tampa Bay Rays come in ranked at No. 16 and top the list in affordability.

Craig Counsell, motivational speaker

Nicolet ballplayers get pep talk from Counsell, then beat Whitefish Bay
July 1, 2009 12:31 p.m. | Prior to Monday night's high school baseball game between Nicolet and Whitefish Bay, Brewers infielder Craig Counsell gave some of the players a bit of a pre-game pep talk.

Surprisingly, though, the 1988 graduate of Whitefish Bay High School, didn't chat with players from his alma mater. Instead, he provided words of encouragement to conference rival Nicolet.

"Everyone really appreciated it," said Nicolet coach Dick Sykes. "There were no autographs. Just a real nice talk from a great guy."

Whatever Counsell said to the team appears to have worked - Nicolet handily defeated Bay by a 12-2 score.